Last year I started getting shoulder pain when I benched. So I quit benching and mostly used dumbbells and machines which seemed to help. After 9 months of not benching I decided to try it again to see how it felt. I did it for a few weeks and the pain returned with a vengeance and will not go away.
It hurts if I push down on top of my shoulder, right in the middle. It also hurts badly in that same spot when I flex my traps.
I’m just curious if anyone has had something similar and if I need to go see a doc or if some rehab work will do.
If I had to guess I would say it is the Acromioclavicular joint or AC joint based off your description of where the pain is located and the onset of pain during flexion of the trap. When you say middle of the shoulder I’m assuming you mean the pain is closer to your neck and not on the outside of the shoulder. If you meant that it feels like it is actually deeper inside the shoulder, then that changes the likely possibilities. Depending on the severity of the pain it could just be tightness stemming from over active traps (very common) and the muscles that control the neck (less likely the direct cause, but can contribute to tightness of the trap). If it was labral or cuff based I would assume that you would not have been able to continue benching to any degree or doing any overhead lifting without some degree of pain in the area.
The AC joint needs to move backwards for a full range of motion in the bench , causing it to pull on the trapezoid ligament, which it the case of tight traps could be what you are agrevating during the movement. If you continued to perfrom patterns that kept the trap over active (heavy overhead lifting for example) but never moved the shoulder into deep retraction it is very possible you could have maintained the issue that is causing the pain without feeling any symptoms.
You always want to rule out more severe issues, so if you have insurance go see a PT for an evaluation, they will perform some tests to rule out any damage to the GH joint and a rotator cuff strain or impingement. A basic x-ray can show inflamation which will help isolate the area of aggrevation and a skilled PT should be able to trace the cause back from there. In the event some of the manual tests show a positve result for possible conective tissue damage they may order an MRI, however from what you described it doesn’t sound like you have severe damage in that area. The rehab for issues from upper trap dominace is pretty simple and can be done on your own for the most part, if you have the insurance then go for PT if needed, otherwise the eval shouldn’t run you more than $200 and you can probably find a basic shoulder stabilzation program online or through this site.
Thanks for the detailed response Bronco. I looked at a diagram of the shoulder and the AC joint looks like the very spot I’m talking about.
Just to clarify, I quit benching as soon as it started hurting again. I used to be able to incline press without much discomfort but even that hurts now, as does overhead pressing. I do have insurance so I’ll probably just get it checked out. Do you suggest going to a PT as opposed to an MD?
Glad I could help, a PT will be better at diagnosing dysfunction in the area than a general physician. An orthapedic surgeon is the ultimate authority in that field, but for your issue a PT should do just fine and will be much more flexible in terms of scheduling and follow-ups. Do some research and find a clinic that specializes in shoulders, or at least works with overhead athletes. They should have an association with an orthapedist in the area to outsource any issue they can’t decipher. Hopefully it will just be a muscular imbalance issue.
Mate, shoulder pain with benching is a pretty common complaint. What you are describing could be anything. You probably need someone who knows what they are doing have a look at you doing a bench and specifically what the offending shoulder is doing through the movement. It could be something as simple as a tight tx spine or just as easily not.
[quote]Bronco_XIII wrote:
Glad I could help, a PT will be better at diagnosing dysfunction in the area than a general physician. An orthapedic surgeon is the ultimate authority in that field, but for your issue a PT should do just fine and will be much more flexible in terms of scheduling and follow-ups. Do some research and find a clinic that specializes in shoulders, or at least works with overhead athletes. They should have an association with an orthapedist in the area to outsource any issue they can’t decipher. Hopefully it will just be a muscular imbalance issue. [/quote]
Just found out state law requires the PT to have a physician’s referral before they can do any treatment. So I guess I’ll have to find a doc first.
[quote]super saiyan wrote:
[quote]Bronco_XIII wrote:
Glad I could help, a PT will be better at diagnosing dysfunction in the area than a general physician. An orthapedic surgeon is the ultimate authority in that field, but for your issue a PT should do just fine and will be much more flexible in terms of scheduling and follow-ups. Do some research and find a clinic that specializes in shoulders, or at least works with overhead athletes. They should have an association with an orthapedist in the area to outsource any issue they can’t decipher. Hopefully it will just be a muscular imbalance issue. [/quote]
Just found out state law requires the PT to have a physician’s referral before they can do any treatment. So I guess I’ll have to find a doc first. [/quote]
Well in that case I would look for an orthapedist, sometimes they are stationed at the clinic where therapy would be done as well.